| Tourney Name: | 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| Dates: | 6 February 2013 – 5 March 2014 |
| Num Teams: | 20 |
| Confederations: | 1 |
| Matches: | 60 |
| Goals: | 161 |
| Top Scorer: | Reza Ghoochannejhad Ali Mabkhout (5 goals each) |
| Prevseason: | 2011 |
| Nextseason: | 2019 |
The 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification was a qualification process organized by the AFC to determine the participating teams for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. The 2015 AFC Asian Cup, hosted by Australia, featured 16 teams.
In the initial scheme, ten places were determined by qualification matches, while six places were reserved for the following:
As the host nation Australia also finished as runners-up in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, the initial 6 automatic qualification spots were reduced to 5, with a total of 11 spots eventually determined by the qualification matches, in which 20 AFC members compete.[1]
| Team | Method of qualification | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Last appearance | Previous best performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runners-up (2011) | ||||||
| Winners (1992, 2000, 2004, 2011) | ||||||
| Winners (1956, 1960) | ||||||
| Fourth place (1980) | ||||||
| Fourth place (2004) | ||||||
| Runners-up (1996) | ||||||
| Winners (1984, 1988, 1996) | ||||||
| Group Stage (2004, 2007) | ||||||
| Fourth place (2011) | ||||||
| Quarter-finals (2000, 2011) | ||||||
| Winners (1968, 1972, 1976) | ||||||
| Winners (1980) | ||||||
| Quarter-finals (2004, 2011) | ||||||
| Winners (2007) | ||||||
| Runners-up (1984, 2004) | ||||||
| Debut | None |
The preliminary draw was held in Melbourne on 9 October 2012, 18:00 UTC+11.[2] The twenty teams involved in the qualifiers were drawn into five groups of four teams each, with each group containing one team from each of the following seeding pots. Each group was played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The top two teams from each group and the best third-placed team from among all the groups qualified for the finals.[3]
| width=25% | Pot 1 | width=25% | Pot 2 | width=25% | Pot 3 | width=25% | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The following teams did not enter the main qualifying draw, as categorized as "emerging countries" they compete separately. The teams were eligible to qualify for the 2015 Asian Cup by winning either the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup or the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup.
† Entrants to 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
‡ Entrants to 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
The following matchdays were assigned by the AFC for 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification. As 15 and 19 November 2013 were also the dates of the inter-confederation playoffs for the 2014 FIFA World Cup,[4] a number of alternative matchdays were allocated.
| Year | Matchday | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Matchday 1 | 6 February |
| Matchday 2 | 22 March | |
| Matchday 3 | 15 October | |
| Matchday 4 | 15 November | |
| Matchday 5 | 19 November | |
| 2014[5] | Alternative | 11, 18, 25, 31 January 4 February |
| Matchday 6 | 5 March |
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To determine the best third-placed team, the following criteria were used:[6]
Faouzi Aaish
Tha'er Bawab Ahmad Hayel
Igor Sergeev
Boaz Solossa
Ashkan Dejagah
Sebastián Soria
Thitipan Puangchan Sardor Rashidov Vokhid Shodiev Ismail Abdul-Latif Saad Al Amer Abdulla Saleh Mohamed Salmeen
Wu Lei Wu Xi Yu Dabao Zhang Xizhe Zhao Xuri
Chan Wai Ho Lo Kwan Yee Karim Ansarifard Jalal Hosseini Alireza Jahanbakhsh Yaghoub Karimi Amir Hossein Sadeghi Masoud Shojaei
Ali Adnan Hammadi Ahmad Karrar Jassim Mossab Al-Laham Yusuf Al-Rawashdeh Khalil Bani Attiah Abdallah Deeb Ali Afif Yusef Ahmed Abdulkarim Al-Ali Hassan Al-Haydos Abdelkarim Hassan Jeddo Mohammed Kasola
Ahmad Al Douni Abdul Fattah Al Agha Oday Jafal Omar Khribin Sanharib Malki Raja Rafe Burhan Sahyouni Adisak Kraisorn Chanathip Songkrasin Mongkol Tossakrai Teerasil Dangda Teeratep Winothai Odil Ahmedov Shohruh Gadoev
Ayman Al-Hagri Mohammed Al-Sarori Ala'a Al-Sasi Theeraton Bunmathan (playing against Kuwait)